It hasn’t been an easy start for the Fredericton Freeze.
Overwhelmed by early season injuries and the absence of two key players through a trip of a lifetime experience has hindered Fredericton in the early going of the Maritime Women’s Basketball Association.
The Freeze has been kept together with Band-aids and duct tape, coming out of the gate at 1-3.
Fredericton, which has played the least amount of games at this point of the season, needs to turn things around and that begins Thursday at home.
The Freeze welcomes Saint John’s Port City Fog to the Lady Beaverbrook Gymnasium on the campus of the University of New Brunswick.
Game time is 7:30 p.m.
‘It has been a challenge, that is the best work to describe things in the early going,’ said first-year head coach and general manager, Bram Russell. ‘You prepare for what’s in front of you and you build your game plan around the roster you were expecting to have. Then, things change and we’ve had to battle. We’ve been in every game, but some injuries have hurt us down the stretch. This is one heck of a league. Teams aren’t going to feel sorry for us and we’re not going to feel sorry for ourselves. We’re going to battle.’
Jayda Veinot has only been able to dress for one game and Sophie Doiron joins her on the injured reserve list with lower body injuries.
Rookie Neleh McAloon was banged up against Port City earlier in the season, but has battled through that adversity.
Bailey Russell and Allie McCarthy were away on a trip to Africa with their University of Ottawa Gee Gees’ teammates and Kiandra MacMullin is expected to return to the lineup Thursday.
‘Our players have battled through some adversity and we’ve held leads late into the fourth quarter, but haven’t been able to nail things down,’ Russell said. ‘We know it’s about where you finish and not where you start, but the pieces are starting together. It’s kind of crazy to think we haven’t had a full lineup once this season, but we look forward to hopefully seeing that come together soon.’
The Fog comes into Fredericton with a 3-2 mark, one of those wins a 75-68 decision over the Freeze on May 16 in Saint John.
Thursday’s game is the first of three in a row for Fredericton.
The Freeze host Halifax Hornets on Saturday, May 30, at 6:30 p.m., at the LB Gym and then meet Lake City 56ers of Dartmouth/Cole Harbour/Preston to close the month of May at 12:30 p.m., same venue.
Admission is at the door for Thursday’s game.
Ticket prices are $8 adults, $5 seniors/students and children under-14 are free.
The game will be livestreamed on Pay Per View through www.ao.live with Bill Gibson on the call.
Fredericton and Port City officially open Week IV with tonight’s tilt.
On Saturday, there are two games as a pair of Nova Scotia entrants find their way into New Brunswick.
Halifax Thunder (4-0) visits Moncton Mystics (4-1) in a 2 p.m., clash at Crandall University.
Truro Tidal Queens make their first-ever visit to Miramichi to play the HerIcanes.
Game time is 6 p.m., at Miramichi Valley High School.
On Sunday, Thunder slides into Miramichi for a 1 p.m., date while the PROLINE Featured Game of the Week is at 2 p.m., at Mount St. Vincent University between host Halifax Hornets and Lake City.
Truro faces Moncton at 3 p.m., to cap the weekend.
– First-year head coach Bram Russell watches action unfold in front of him at the LB Gym.
